Deflate-gate closer to an answer?

Cap is never an issue with them.
They go hardline on contracts per their structure.
Other than Revis and 1-2 other FAs, they regularly evolve their team with newer less expensive players and let BB do his thing with them.

My big question is:
Given the faulty science lesson by BB, the fumble-record-at -home-games analysis on a thread a few days ago, and 'another' possible rogue employee, if that person of interest is responsible, just how long have they been doing it?
Additionally, I know he claimed he never deflated the balls,but all TB had to say was, "the ball is really hard to grip in cold weather", in the presence of a 'rogue' employee, and poof! Home team balls are deflated.
I also think little of come of the conclusion, other than the employee is punished or fired, but ends up working in the Krafts box factory or Patriot Place maintenance.

In comment 12110199 JCin332 said:

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that they will try to scapegoat someone like this guy...hopefully he sings like a canary..

I hope he doesn't say a word. And I hope that's a result of someone on the Patriots paying him off. That poor guy is going to lose his job regardless, he might as well get money out of it. Only way I hope he sings like a canary is if he's paid by some news outlet to do so

Pats will offer to trade him for a draft pick.

So why would someone just deflated them on his own.....
He's obviously involved, and didn't the Pats conduct their own investigation? So they didnt interview the one guy who handles the balls??? Or he lied to them but not the NFL???

It wouldn't surprise me if someone took this on his own to do this. This will be embarrasing for Bill especially after his "science rant"

indicates complicity. He wouldn't give that bullshit rant if he weren't trying to obfuscate the situation.

The Attendant happened to hear Bill and Brady talk, where Brady happened to mention how much easier it is for him to throw the ball at 10.5 PSI, and that he took it upon himself to do this.

In comment 12110312 markky said:

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indicates complicity. He wouldn't give that bullshit rant if he weren't trying to obfuscate the situation.

Bill's rant was about mocking the media. Nothing more, nothing less.

he knows there is likely a possibility of tampering. he won't be stunned this actually happened.

yet he still went into a scientific lecture.

the only alternative is that he DIDN'T know and has rogue employees: Brady, the attendant, etc.

so either he is a liar or is not in control of his organization.

it's more likely he's a liar.

and there is zero chance that this was actually done by a rogue employee who did it without knowledge of both Brady and B.B.

Goodell is leaking this, and not all of the details, to make the Patriots sweat and deal with one of the most annoying, relentless distractions in SB history. And ultimately lose...

It's his counter punch to BB's science fair press conference on Saturday when BB threw down the gauntlet and said, "NFL...this is your process issue, not ours..."

mentioned to people throgh the years that an underflatedd ball was easier in the cold during his time with the team. Most probably a manager worked the balls on his own, no one ordered it,but Brady's preference was well known.

Watching Belichick receive the trophy in front of Goodell would be a laugh.

The NFL has this shitshow coming to them.

In comment 12110346 Go Terps said:

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Watching Belichick receive the trophy in front of Goodell would be a laugh. The NFL has this shitshow coming to them.

And then I want Belichick to spike the trophy in Mike Florios face.

he's the best ever.

but the simplest explanation is usually the right explanation.

- BB has demonstrated he's willing to break the rules (still videotaping after being told not to)

- he has suffered many other accusations (clock manipulation, filming walk throughs, et. al.)

- the league was given a heads up on the ball pressure (which is why they were prepared to test during the first half).

- an employee took the balls into a room he wasn't supposed to. very unlikely an employee would do something THIS radical without guidance. it makes no sense that an attendant would let out 2 PSI! on his own

- the league is taking this very seriously, interviewing over 40 people so far and not yet interviewing Brady

either Brady or BB knew about this. any other explanation requires at least one improbability.

it's also likely this has been happening since the rule change. maybe not, but likely.

then it actually makes less sense for BB to have direct knowledge. The thing with conspiracies is, the fewer people that know about it, the fewer people can talk about it.

The way Belichick threw Brady overboard the other day makes me think that, at worst, he was aware of the practice and never cared, but didn't have direct knowledge or approval that it was being done for the Colts game.

how do the officials explain away the rule ... the "remain under the supervision of the Referee" part?

Quote:

The Referee shall be the sole judge as to whether all balls offered for play comply with these specifications. A pump is to be furnished by the home club, and the balls shall remain under the supervision of the Referee until they are delivered to the ball attendant just prior to the start of the game.

"Equilibrium" ?

took the balls out of the referees room (which usually has NFL security per a current NFL ref) and took them to another room for 6-10 minutes.

is there anything that this employee did that could be considered criminal in nature? the refs had a reasonable expectation that the balls were secure when left in the room.

Can't get worse Brandon Browner is talking about targeting Seahawks injured players to injure then worse.
Link - ( New Window )

would be to suspend Bill and Tom for next year. If they somehow win the SB can you imagine how that might negate a victory? Right now many will always have this "cheaters again" fog around several Superbowls.

In comment 12110466 markky said:

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took the balls out of the referees room (which usually has NFL security per a current NFL ref) and took them to another room for 6-10 minutes. is there anything that this employee did that could be considered criminal in nature? the refs had a reasonable expectation that the balls were secure when left in the room.

Can you post the update?

In comment 12110466 markky said:

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is there anything that this employee did that could be considered criminal in nature? the refs had a reasonable expectation that the balls were secure when left in the room.

Probably not.

In comment 12110466 markky said:

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took the balls out of the referees room (which usually has NFL security per a current NFL ref) and took them to another room for 6-10 minutes. is there anything that this employee did that could be considered criminal in nature? the refs had a reasonable expectation that the balls were secure when left in the room.

The tweet seems to say the balls were removed from the official's room to be brought to the field with their knowledge. There is no indication they were sneaked out.

took balls from officials locker room to another area on way to field

Assuming that this report is accurate and assuming that a ball boy did tamper with balls, what the fuck? The NFL had notice from the Colts beforehand that the Patriots may be playing with underinflated footballs. The NFL would rather compromise a game so that they could catch the Patriots read-handed than just tell the Patriots "we have received complaints about underinflated balls, so whether you do it or not, don't do it this week because we will be checking throughout the game."

I mean, seriously, they'd rather risk the Colts getting screwed by an unfair advantage than ensure an honest game.

Quote:

The NFL had notice from the Colts beforehand that the Patriots may be playing with underinflated footballs. The NFL would rather compromise a game so that they could catch the Patriots read-handed than just tell the Patriots "we have received complaints about underinflated balls, so whether you do it or not, don't do it this week because we will be checking throughout the game."

I don't get this part either. Imagine if the Pats had a big first half but the Colts came back in the 2nd half and ended up losing by 3 points or so. The league's premier event would be tainted. Folks would say the Pats are only in it because of cheating. A helluva risk they took.

If underinflated balls are a big advantage then you can't wait until halftime. If they aren't then why make a federal case out of it?

In comment 12110799 bluepepper said:

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Quote: The NFL had notice from the Colts beforehand that the Patriots may be playing with underinflated footballs. The NFL would rather compromise a game so that they could catch the Patriots read-handed than just tell the Patriots "we have received complaints about underinflated balls, so whether you do it or not, don't do it this week because we will be checking throughout the game." I don't get this part either. Imagine if the Pats had a big first half but the Colts came back in the 2nd half and ended up losing by 3 points or so. The league's premier event would be tainted. Folks would say the Pats are only in it because of cheating. A helluva risk they took. If underinflated balls are a big advantage then you can't wait until halftime. If they aren't then why make a federal case out of it?

Well not that i am a NFL office defender (I think Goodell is a horrible commish), but they did inspect them as required and they met league specs. I think they viewed it as more about a losing team whining then being factual

No difference on game.mmthere are many rules that are bad and many laws. Scuffing is also illegal. Should there be a full scale investigation? How about steroid use? I have read that the Seahawks are the worst steroid abusers in the league. Don't you think THAT should be investigated rather than this contrived, utter waste of time.

that actually affects games, unlike the football inflation issue you nannies are focused on.
Tainted Seahawks - ( New Window )

eats steroids like Ineat peanuts and I love peanuts.

In comment 12110942 SomeFan said:

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Don't you think THAT should be investigated rather than this contrived, utter waste of time.

That is investigated. Players are tested and suspended if they break the rules.

It's possible to enforce multiple rules at the same time.

In comment 12110803 montanagiant said:

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In comment 12110799 bluepepper said: Quote: I don't get this part either. Imagine if the Pats had a big first half but the Colts came back in the 2nd half and ended up losing by 3 points or so. The league's premier event would be tainted. Folks would say the Pats are only in it because of cheating. A helluva risk they took. If underinflated balls are a big advantage then you can't wait until halftime. If they aren't then why make a federal case out of it? Well not that i am a NFL office defender (I think Goodell is a horrible commish), but they did inspect them as required and they met league specs. I think they viewed it as more about a losing team whining then being factual

The league has to assume the balls were inspected per the rules for all games, including the previous Pats game complained about. Unless they completely ignored the Colts complaint they had to realize that the balls would have been deflated AFTER the officials tested them. It seems due diligence was lacking.

I wonder if the game Referee was even aware of the Colts previous allegations since the balls did not remain under his supervision to a degree the previous complaint warranted.

Quote:

irst, per a league source, the other “area on way to field” is a bathroom. The bathroom consists of one toilet and one sink and a door that locks from the inside. Second, according to the same source, the person carried two bags of balls into the bathroom: the 12 balls to be used by the Patriots and the 12 balls to be used by the Colts. Third, from the same source, the evidence comes from a surveillance video that was discovered by the Patriots and given to the NFL early in the investigation. Fourth, again from the same source, the video shows the employee in the bathroom for approximately 90 seconds.

Read more - ( New Window )

to see if the guy always goes to the bathroom before bringing the balls to the field.

Regardless, 90 seconds doesn't seem like a lot of time to take out 11 balls, deflate them, then put them back in the bag. But still damned suspicious.

I honestly think the NFL didn't see this as that big of a deal (as evidenced by the low minimum fine of $25,000) but once again got caught off guard by the media and public response.

In comment 12110942 SomeFan said:

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No difference on game.mmthere are many rules that are bad and many laws. Scuffing is also illegal. Should there be a full scale investigation? How about steroid use? I have read that the Seahawks are the worst steroid abusers in the league. Don't you think THAT should be investigated rather than this contrived, utter waste of time.

Why do you claim scuffing is illegal? It is not illegal, it just can't be overdone

In comment 12111034 sphinx said:

Quote:

Quote: irst, per a league source, the other “area on way to field” is a bathroom. The bathroom consists of one toilet and one sink and a door that locks from the inside. Second, according to the same source, the person carried two bags of balls into the bathroom: the 12 balls to be used by the Patriots and the 12 balls to be used by the Colts. Third, from the same source, the evidence comes from a surveillance video that was discovered by the Patriots and given to the NFL early in the investigation. Fourth, again from the same source, the video shows the employee in the bathroom for approximately 90 seconds. Read more - ( New Window )

He released two pounds of air from 11 balls in 90 seconds? Could be red herring. I'm not dismissing the theory that the balls were filled with hot air before being tested. Because the attendant stopped to take a piss on the way to the field he will be blamed for this but it will never be proven.

if the bag were a mesh bag, common for carrying footballs, he never would have had to take the balls out of the bag

could be taken many different ways, such as that time limit not allowing the 12th ball to get done, or that its too fast to be a legit excuse, etc..

but if you have done it before, it probably only takes a few seconds to stick the needle in and deflate a ball. Also, if you've done it before, you probably know exactly how long it takes to deflate on from 12.5 to 11.5 etc.

has an impact during bad weather days. The more you can squeeze, even a mm, the chance of fumbling decreases dramatically. But it had no impact on the result of that game. On the other hand all those seahawks players who use Aderall have a much bigger impact on the game.. Its a class 2 drug and should not be taken lightly.. It also has a huge impact on mental performance. I know medical students who have taken it and it exponentially increases their ability to learn and be cognizant of things going on around them. I know from the same and other medical students that there is no need for Richard Sherman to take them...

I'm not sure you would have enough time to measure exactly how much you're taking out. Maybe if you just stick a pin in for a few seconds to release some air but what if you take out too much.
It seems too risky to me. After the inspection is when officials are supposed to be paying attention to these things

In comment 12111161 Kevin999 said:

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but if you have done it before, it probably only takes a few seconds to stick the needle in and deflate a ball. Also, if you've done it before, you probably know exactly how long it takes to deflate on from 12.5 to 11.5 etc.

And how did you know the balls were all at 12.5 PSI and not 13.0 or 13.5 or anything between 12.5 and 13.5?

I've bought every type of air gauge under the sun to check the air in my tires including the new expensive digital units and I have STILL NOT found an air gauge that if taking the reading five times in a row will give me the same reading. I've found that the more you spend on an air gauge the less accurate it seems to be.

Also, have you noticed that the process of measuring the air pressure in your tire always results in a little air leaking out?

I wonder if these types of issues are preventing the NFL from taking a hard stand on the evidence they have.

In comment 12111249 sphinx said:

Quote:

In comment 12111161 Kevin999 said: Quote: but if you have done it before, it probably only takes a few seconds to stick the needle in and deflate a ball. Also, if you've done it before, you probably know exactly how long it takes to deflate on from 12.5 to 11.5 etc. And how did you know the balls were all at 12.5 PSI and not 13.0 or 13.5 or anything between 12.5 and 13.5?

That's the easy part because supposedly the Pats equipment manager would inflate them all to 12.5 PSI, the lowest allowed level. Prior to giving the balls to the refs for inspection, he can take as long as he pleases.

The more interesting question to me is, were all the deflated balls at the same pressure? It seems unlikely that a guy stepping into a bathroom for 90 seconds would be able to accurately deflate 11 balls to even a small range (e.g. 10.5-10.7 PSI). To get all the balls within a tight range like that, IMO, would require actually using a gauge to test them, not simply sticking a needle in and quickly letting some air out.

lol..That would be hilarious to watch

In comment 12111523 montanagiant said:

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lol..That would be hilarious to watch

I'm sure ESPN already has people in bathrooms trying to deflate 11 balls in 90 seconds...

They need to get a bunch of equipment managers though and see if they could do it and see how tight a PSI range they could get the balls in. Probably a better chance that someone used to handling balls could do it, than any random dude.

In comment 12111410 giants#1 said:

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In comment 12111249 sphinx said: Quote: And how did you know the balls were all at 12.5 PSI and not 13.0 or 13.5 or anything between 12.5 and 13.5? That's the easy part because supposedly the Pats equipment manager would inflate them all to 12.5 PSI, the lowest allowed level.

But how does he know the officials didn't pump up the balls a bit to get them above the lowest allowable PSI just to make sure ... with the pump they had been supplied by leagues rule? lol.

and actually doing it next to a toilet inside a restroom

It seems his ball #7 and ball #12 were the same one, and the ball that's under his left wrist while doing ball #4 was neglected.


video of deflating 12 balls in 40 seconds - ( New Window )

Francis from Stripes...

"If you tackle me... I kill ya... if you LOOK at me...I kill ya..if you so much as line UP against me...........I KILL YA"